PRODUCTS
MIMObit® analyzes networks consisting of Tx and Rx radios enabled with multi-antenna systems in a variety of propagation environments. It also provides Spectrum Utilization Information such waterfall charts, Occupancy and Signal or Interference Power Spectral Density in the environment 2.
MIMObit is based on an electromagnetics exact formulation of the network formed by arbitrary distributions of Tx and Rx radios. The radios in the propagation environment are grouped into three groups, signal transmitters, interference transmitters and receivers. All radios could be outfitted with single or multiple antenna systems. The user can customize the excitation vectors of each radio so as to apply various algorithms of choice. MIMObit then calculates signal and interference Power Spectral Density in the environment, Spectrum Occupancy, waterfall graphs, Capacity and Bit Rates for LTE, 802.11n 802.11ac and WiMAX radios. MIMObit also includes a Method of Moments tool to describe various dipole arrays and reflectors. MIMObit also allows the user to import antenna files from simulations via the HFSS and CST's Microwave Studio, FEKO and the XFDTD EM simulation tools. It supports simple and complicated propagation models such as LOS, flat-Earth, iid, SCME, Winner II, Winner+, IEEE TGn, and the 3GPP New Radio (NR) models. It also accepts user defined propagation models/files. MIMOscript is the scripted version of MIMObit that could be invoked from within in-house codes for additional research studies and investigations.
WHAT: A simulation tool based on an electromagnetics exact formulation of a wireless link and allowing its user to:
Assess the performance of MIMO antenna systems at the capacity and throughput level
Assess the dynamic range of communication algorithms with realistic antenna systems
Study Spectrum Sharing, Dynamic Spectrum Access and System Coexistence
WHY: Smart Antenna Algorithms typically oversimplify by considering a MIMO antenna system to consist of a number, say N, of individual antennas. MIMObit considers it as what it really is: An antenna system which happens to have N ports. The ramifications are not trivial.
WHO: MIMObit uses a cross-layer formulation of wireless communications. The following users/disciplines find it useful:
Base Station, User Equipment or Access point Antenna engineers who have to make product design decisions. They can create smaller/cheaper products for the same throughput, or higher throughput for the same size/cost product.
Communication engineers studying realistic antenna ramifications to smart algorithms such as 'Antenna Selection', Direction of Arrival Estimation, Channel Estimation, etc.
Engineers investigating Spectrum Sharing, Dynamic Spectrum Access and System Coexistence
FACTOID: MIMObit can handle any wireless system, e.g. any frequency, any antenna system, and any technology.
PLATFORM: MIMObit currently runs on Windows only.
LICENSING: Network (i.e. Floating) as well as Node Locked Licenses are available.
PURCHASING: contact sales directly for purchase information
DESCRIPTION
MIMObit analyzes networks consisting of Tx and Rx radios enabled with multi-antenna systems in a variety of propagation environments. It also provides Spectrum Utilization Information such waterfall charts, Occupancy and signal or interference Power Spectral Density in the environment.
MIMObit is based on an electromagnetics exact formulation of the network formed by arbitrary distributions of Tx and Rx radios. The radios in the propagation environment are grouped into three groups, signal transmitters, interference transmitters and receivers. All radios could be outfitted with single or multiple antenna systems. The user can customize the excitation vectors of each radio so as to apply various algorithms of choice. MIMObit then calculates signal and interference Power Spectral Density in the environment, Spectrum Occupancy, waterfall graphs, Capacity and Bit Rates for LTE, 802.11n 802.11ac and WiMAX radios. MIMObit also includes a Method of Moments tool to describe various dipole arrays and reflectors. MIMObit also allows the user to import antenna files from simulations via the HFSS and CST's Microwave Studio, FEKO and the XFDTD EM simulation tools. It supports simple and complicated propagation models such as LOS, flat-Earth, iid, SCME, Winner II, Winner+ and IEEE TGn. It also accepts user defined propagation models/files. MIMOscript is the scripted version that could be invoked from within in-house codes for additional research studies and investigations.
MIMObit 3.2 includes the following main features:
Tools to customize imported and/or MIMObit generated propagation environments
Simplified antenna systems for Massive MIMO applications (can handle coupling for some of the antenna elements and simple Array Factor for others)
Import from Ray Tracing tools (for environs where standard prop models do/may not apply)
Import of user-defined propagation models
Interface with EMAG's EM.Terrano, a Ray Tracing tool (exports directly into MIMObit)
Full polarimetric Ray Tracing in EM.Terrano (agnostic of the antenna systems used). All MIMO antenna design experimentation, including capacity and throughput sims, performed in MIMObit.
CTIA Test Plan for 2x2 Downlink MIMO and Transmit Over-the-Air Performance
Euler angle rotation visualizer
Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) antenna systems are being employed in WiFi to increase robustness and throughput and are fundamental to the successful deployment of Cognitive Radio, 4G and 5G wireless systems. But, unlike past practices, MIMO antenna systems cannot be adequately described with traditional attributes of gain and radiation efficiency alone. Furthermore, the same techniques that optimize MIMO systems have the greatest potential in optimizing Spectrum Utilization and Dynamic Spectrum Access (DSA) approaches. Thus, integrated approaches, where antenna design decisions are made at the Capacity/Throughput level, while DSA decisions are made at the Spectrum Utilization Efficiency (SUE) level are required in order to arrive at optimal cost-performance solutions.
MIMObit TUTORIALS
PUBLICATIONS
A. Al-Wahhamy, N. E. Buris, H. M. Al-Rizzo, and S. Yahya, "An Efficient Paradigm for Evaluating the Channel Capacity
of Closed-Loop Massive MIMO Systems," Progress In Electromagnetics Research C, Vol. 98, 1-16, 2020.
Al-Wahhamy, H. Al-Rizzo and N.E. Buris, “Efficient Evaluation of MIMO Channel Capacity”,
IEEE Systems Journal, vol.14, Issue 1, pp.614-620, March 2020.
Chu Chengyi and N.E. Buris, “Layout Effects of MIMO Antennas in Handsets”,
International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation (ISAP), Xian, China, Oct. 2019
N. Agnihotri, A. Kantemur, J. Tak, and H. Xin, "A Reconfigurable UWB MIMO Antenna for Indoor and Outdoor Communication Applications",
Proceedings of the 2019 IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation and USNC-URSI Radio Science Meeting, July 7-12, Atlanta, GA, USA.
M. R. Nikkhah, M. A. Panahi, H. Luyen, H. Bahrami, N. Behdad, "Capacity-enhancement in MIMO systems
using biomimetic electrically small antenna arrays", IET Microw. Antennas Propag., 2018, Vol. 12 Iss. 13, pp. 2001-2006.
Al-Wahhamy, H. Al-Rizzo and N.E. Buris, “On the Modeling of Antenna Arrays for Massive MIMO Systems”,
Proceedings of the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Symposium, Boston, MA, July 2018.
N.E. Buris, “MIMO Antenna System Throughput Simulation”, Proceedings of the International Symposium on Antennas
and Propagation (ISAP), Publisher: IEEE, Busan, South Korea, October 23-26 2018.